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Usually, when we discuss automobile accidents in the context of personal injury law and negligence, things like distracted driving, driving under the influence of alcohol, speeding, violating traffic laws, and so on, come to mind. However, negligent drivers may not always be the problem in such traffic crashes.
Unsafe road conditions like the absence of any guardrails, erosion (for a lake-side road), being littered by potholes, lack of warning signs, and faulty road designs (i.e. defective roads with lots of sharp curves) can also play a huge role in causing a crash.
As with all personal injury cases, crashes caused by unsafe road conditions are also based on proving negligence.
But this is where things get trickier.
Not only do you need to identify the liable parties for negligent road construction/poor maintenance, but also prove that they knew of the damages/risks but still failed to act responsibly, resulting in the crash. And you’ll also have to establish that the crash happened because of unsafe road conditions and nothing else.
It’s complicated – take our word for it. However, you can substantially improve your odds and even figure out if you have a fighting chance, by contacting an experienced attorney in time and seeking their services for an initial consultation and legal action.
Who is liable when poor road conditions cause an accident? Usually, government agencies and departments are responsible for the maintenance of roadways and fixing any roadway defect (if one surfaces) throughout a state. However, this responsibility may not fall upon the shoulders of individual parties but may instead be shared.
Road maintenance encompasses everything from de-icing to putting up guardrails, filling potholes, paving the streets, and so on. One department may take charge of one set of responsibilities while the other might handle the rest.
Depending on the precise details of your case, either the city, county, or state (a department operating under their umbrella) may be the responsible party. Your first task, as an accident victim, will be to identify the liable party for your case.
This should not be difficult at all, you just need to type in the query into the Google search bar (i.e. who is responsible for filling potholes in my state), and that’s it.
Once you’ve identified the liable party, not only will you be able to bring them to justice but will also be able to discuss with a legal expert whether you can sue them for your losses or not. As we mentioned earlier, the conditions for filing a compensation claim against a government entity are complex.
Be sure to discuss things with an experienced personal injury attorney before doing anything else.
To prove negligence on the part of the government agency responsible for maintaining defective roads, you’ll first have to establish that they had a duty of care. For instance, you can say that it was their legal responsibility to keep them free from potholes or other damages.
You must prove that the said department was aware of the issue (i.e. they had received warnings about the damages) and could’ve acted in time to avoid a disaster, but failed to do so. If that is indeed the case, then your position in the personal injury claim will be quite strong.
For instance, if the said road was littered with potholes and many citizens had already written to the department to get the potholes fixed, but to no effect, then the negligence on the part of the department is pretty clear. Similarly, if you feel that the design or layout of the road itself was defective and can get experts to agree with your claim, then once again, you will be able to prove the negligence of the concerned department.
Keep in mind that the negligence of the government entity will only be proven if they were aware of the issue and had a reasonable time frame to act and preempt disaster. You can’t sue a department if a random tree falls onto a road and causes an accident – they would’ve had no way of knowing the risk.
Getting a competent lawyer on board will make all the difference.
In most cases, you can’t sue a government agency without permission from the relevant authorities (your lawyer will debrief you further on this). And even if you do have a shot, you’ll have to go through an administrative claim process that precedes the actual financial compensation claim.
Once again, we know that it will sound complex because it is.
We noted that there must be ample evidence to suggest that negligence did happen and the neglectful behavior should be gross if you want to sue the government department. Also, the laws regarding this matter vary from state to state.
In Texas, for instance, as with most other states, the statute of limitations for personal injury cases where a government department is concerned, is slashed drastically. You only have six months starting from the moment the accident happened, to file your claim.
Failing to forward your claim within this statutory time limit will result in your case being ignored.
If you do get a chance at filing your claim for injuries due to road defects, don’t waste it. To maximize your chances at securing a payout, be sure to gather ample evidence at the accident scene such as photographs, videos, and witness testimonies.
In the case of a multiple-vehicle crash, exchange information with the other party.
Be sure to report the accident case to the police and keep a copy of the report with you and document all of your losses as well, i.e. medical bills, lost wages, property damage (evidence of motor vehicle damages), extra expenses, and non-economic damages.
Lastly, make haste in contacting a team of accident lawyers because you don’t have much time in such situations, be sure you act fast!
You’re probably quite confused about the odds of your case after reading this article.
And yes, we’ll admit, accidents caused due to dangerous road conditions are tricky to deal with.
However, seeking financial compensation is very much possible and very likely too, if the details of your case are transparent enough and you seek the legal representation of an experienced personal injury lawyer early on.
Our attorneys at Calhoun Meredith are always eager to help clients in need, we treat each personal injury case with the same level of compassion and professionalism.
If you think that your financial instability is keeping you from hiring the services of a competent personal injury attorney, then rest assured, not only do we offer free initial consultation but also won’t charge you any attorney fees until after you’ve won your claim.
This is our contingency fee arrangement plan, call us today to learn more about your legal options and what we can do for you!